Substitute teacher turns herself into police, accused of having sexual encounter with a student

A grand jury returned an indictment for alleged sexual contact involving a student and substitute teacher

Posted: Aug 1, 2018 2:15 PM

Updated: Aug 1, 2018 6:47 PM

Posted By: Mackenzi Hicks

A former substitute teacher has turned herself into Florence Police after a grand jury returned an indictment for having sexual contact with a high school student.

Kayla Safford, 24, of Florence, is accused of having sex with a male student off campus from where she taught at Florence High School. The student was 18 at the time. Detectives were made aware of the allegations in March. The Florence City School system was also made aware of the allegations early into the investigation. Officials presented their evidence to a grand jury last week where the returned the indictment Wednesday.

According to Alabama law, “A person commits the crime of a school employee having sexual contact with a student under the age of 19 years if he or she is a school employee and engages in sexual contact, as defined by Section 13A-6-60(3), with a student, regardless of whether the student is male or female. Consent is not a defense to a charge under this section. The crime of a school employee having sexual contact with a student is a Class C felony.”

Safford was a contracted substitute teacher at the time and police say the relationship started while she taught at Florence High School. She was booked into the Lauderdale County Detention Center on a $10,000 bond and has since bonded out.